Phenomenon Intervention
by CrackPairingLover
Summary: After an encounter with a mysterious woman in the Boundary, Kazuma Kval is forced to run around and jump through portals in the world of Remnant, unintentionally twisting its reality and changing certain events. It may sound like a tiresome journey to the poor vessel, but meeting the people in Remnant might teach him a thing or two about true companionship…
1. Intro

**I do not own RWBY nor BlazBlue.**

 **-IIXII-**

She observed him from afar.

Ever since he had arrived about an hour ago, the boy had been unusually quiet. She had expected him to panic, curse, or sigh at the very least. It was quite odd.

Was he conscious? Alive even?

From what she could tell, he was definitely breathing. But whether if he was conscious or not, she wasn't sure. Thanks to his long bangs, it was hard to tell if his eyes were actually open. But even if he _was_ awake, then what was he up to?

Could it be, he was preoccupied with his own thoughts?

But honestly, what good is there to think when you are stuck and alone in the deep abyss of the Boundary? It made no sense.

Then? Was he trying to kill time?

After all the things that's transpired, killing time would be utterly pointless at this point.

So what?

He was stranded, and sooner or later, the Boundary would destroy him. Nothing would be left of him when the time came, and he'll be forever forgotten.

Simply put it, his very existence serves no purpose anymore. He was no longer needed. Tossed aside like a useless tool, if one may say it like that.

A pity, really.

He could've done so much more in life, instead of listening to _him_ of all people. Though, no one can blame him.

"Hmm..."

She smiled.

The young vessel might just be the type of person she was looking for.

 **-IIXII-**

Kval lifted his eyebrows when a figure appeared in his line of sight. He folded his arms, and soon, a small casual smile crept across his features.

 _A woman_ , he noted, _How weird. What is she even doing here?_

He took the time to examine the newcomer, but not much can be said thanks to the white cloak she wore. The fact that he couldn't see a clear view of her face irritated him, if only for a little bit.

"It's about time you showed up. To tell you the truth, I was growing impatient," he said.

"You're sharp," she commented, slightly amused.

Kval shrugged. "I have to be. Now," He stared at the woman with his serpentine eyes. "what is it that you want? You have been observing me for a while, and I can't help but feel that you want something from me." His eyes turned to slits. "Name it."

The woman tilted her head to one side, seemingly puzzled. "You seem...a bit eager."

Kval chuckled. "I never did say that I would agree to anything."

"So what's the point?" She frowned.

"I'm just curious," answered the young vessel. "You can't blame me now, can you? It's not everyday I get to meet someone in the Boundary."

The woman sighed. "Of course..."

He was troublesome, she'll give him that.

"Do you know the situation you are in, currently?" she asked, and before Kval even had a chance to come up with a reply, she added, "I know you do. Don't lie to me."

Kval grunted. "So what? What's done is done."

"Unless..." the woman trailed off, which seemed to catch the young vessel's attention.

"What do you have in mind?" Kval inquired, curious.

She hummed. "Y'know, instead of rotting away in the Boundary, why not you do something else? I'm sure you'd love to have a small adventure."

He squinted his eyes, not that the woman could see him doing it anyway. "Tell me. Now."

She giggled. "Eager, aren't you?"

His eyes widened. Kval clicked his tongue and looked away. "Just get to the point."

"Okay." She hummed. "So I was thinking, that maybe you'd like to run around in a world that's different than the one you've known previously. Y'know, exercise and stuff!"

 _A different world? Exercise?_ he thought, _Just what in the world is this woman going on about? She must be joking._

"You must run into portals, and each of them will-" she continued, but was annoyed slightly when Kval interrupted.

"H-Hey wait a minute! Portals? What?" Kval inquired, eyes narrowing. "Look, Miss, if this is a sick joke, then you can just leave me to my own devices. I'm not in the mood to-"

Before Kval could even finish his sentence, a bright white portal appeared beneath his feet, much to his shock.

"E-Eh!?"

"Do you want to get out of this place or not?" she questioned with a glare. "If so, then be quiet and listen!"

Now that managed to shut him up effectively.

She sighed. "As I was saying, once you have entered this portal, you will begin your journey. I won't tell you where this particular one leads to, nor the ones which you'll be using for your entire journey, so expect the unexpected. Some portals would take a bit of time to appear, so you are free to wander around in order to kill time. Do you understand?"

"Can I kill anyone?" Kval asked with a blank expression.

The woman couldn't say that she wasn't surprised upon receiving the question, simply because the question itself involved killing others. She didn't want anyone to be killed, as that wasn't her intention in the first place, so she shook her head as an answer. "No, you can't. But if you do, I will not hesitate to drag you back to the Boundary."

Kval grumbled something under his breath, but the woman decided to ignore it.

"And if you even _think_ of _not_ entering any of the portals," she quickly added, "then expect to be tossed inside the Boundary."

Kval stared at her. "What's the difference?"

"You either get dragged or tossed inside the Boundary." She shrugged with a tilt of her head. "It's your choice."

"Point taken." He nodded.

She smiled. "So, you understand everything?"

Kval nodded once more. "Crystal clear."

"Any questions?"

"No questions."

"Are you ready to start your journey?"

"Hey, I never did agree to-"

"Great!"

"H-Hey wait!"

"Down you go!"

And with that, the mysterious woman rushed at the vessel in order to grab him by the shoulders, right before shoving him down into the bright portal below.

A small smile tugged at the woman's lips when the panicked expression which was displayed across Kval's face met her eyes, and she couldn't resist the urge to giggle at how funny it looked. "Have fun!" she told him.

Kval gave the woman a sharp glare. He took note of her silver eyes, but before he had a chance to comment about them, he was soon devoured whole by the portal.

 **-IIXII-**

 **This is my creation for the Monty Oum Project. It's not much, I know, but at the same time, it's something. I've already planned the ending for this story, which will be set in RWBY Volume 5. I mean why not, right? I will explain more about this story soon in Life Of An Author, so don't worry.**

 **If you're wondering about Phenomenon Intervention having some sort of connection with the Still Alive series, well...hehe...who knows? You can figure it out yourself. Though, that might be a waste of your time, so I don't recommend it.**

 **Also, keep in mind that I won't keep the events in order, nor will I repeat them. Well, unless I got more ideas, I might. And requests from readers are welcome! Please, just send them in!**

 **That is all from me.**

 **This is CPL, over and out.**


	2. Red, White, Black, And Yellow

**-IIXII-**

The air left his lungs when his body crashed against the ground, but oddly enough, it was a lot less painful than he had expected.

Kval quickly looked around in order to scan his surroundings. He took note of the trees all around, and was slightly surprised to see the area coated in snow.

"Where...am I?" Kval went up to his feet, and later focused his eyes on the bright portal which was right above him. Just when he was about to jump back into the Boundary so he could strangle that damn woman for making him go through all this, the large portal quickly shrunk in size and disappeared. "I can't believe I'm doing this..."

First, Terumi tossed him aside like he was a worthless tool. But now, he needed to run around in a world that he had no knowledge of? If this was a damn dream, then he hoped that Nine would wake him up by burning his ass in bed or something.

The woman's explanation about the portals came to mind, and Kval proceeded to look around so he could find the damn thing in order to get this over with. "Well, where is it?" he grumbled. Seconds ticked by, and _still_ no signs of the portal. He sighed. "Killing time it is then..."

Something growled in the bushes nearby, and Kval immediately took out his butterfly knives and went into a combat stance.

"What now?"

As if on cue, a bunch of black creatures came crawling out of their hiding places, snarling as they set their eyes on Kval. The creatures bared their fangs and prepared their claws, and as if that wasn't enough, more of them came crawling out of the bushes.

The area was practically swarming with them now.

Kval squinted his eyes.

"Well..."

 **-IIXII-**

Ruby eyed the Beowolves, her eyes narrowing. Each and every one of them were intent on tearing her to pieces, and she was fully aware of that.

But she wasn't scared.

She'll take them all on.

Ruby reloaded her scythe and crouched down, and just when she was about to finish them off, something unexpected happened.

A person came running out of the woods and into the field, and he didn't seem like he knew where he was heading, judging by the fact that he was running straight into the huge pack of Beowolves which she's currently facing. That being said, the creatures turned their full attention on the newcomer as well, and the way they looked at him did not sit well with her.

"Get lost you freaks!" yelled the newcomer.

Ruby gasped at the sight of Beowolves rushing out of the woods and chasing after him, and was yet again taken off-guard when the Beowolves which _she_ had been handling for the past few minutes decided to chase after the guy as well.

She needed to do something about this.

Ruby lunged herself forward and began cutting through the huge pack of Beowolves with her beloved scythe. Limbs flew in every direction, but that did nothing to stop the red reaper from tearing the creatures to tiny little pieces.

"Crap!"

But that did.

Ruby looked to where the newcomer was, and her eyes widened upon seeing the sight of him in the process of pushing himself off the ground. He had tripped, apparently, and the Beowolves were right behind him. She had to make it in time, or else he'll be torn apart.

But before Ruby could think of anything else, one of the Beowolves quickly pounced on him. And then another. And another.

That one spot where the guy had been was now practically a pile of Beowolves.

"No!" yelled Ruby, horrified.

More and more Beowolves piled themselves up onto the poor guy, and all Ruby could do was stare at the sight in absolute horror. She had failed.

She gripped Crescent Rose until her knuckles went white, but before she could charge in and engage the Beowolves in combat, something caught her attention. Some sort of green light was emitting from the pile, and Ruby squinted her eyes, slightly confused.

And the next thing she knew, Ruby was blown away by a large explosion.

Beowolves flew in every direction, and most of them were probably dead. Nothing could've survived that explosion. That being said, what was that?

Ruby sat herself up from her spot and winced, before turning her attention to where the large explosion occurred. What met her eyes shocked her entirely, and she covered her mouth with a hand.

 **-IIXII-**

Kval panted as the green energy around his body faded away into nothingness, all the while keeping his gaze locked onto the Beowolves around him. They were dead, he knew that, but he wasn't going to lower his guard just yet. He didn't want to risk more of those freaks chasing after his tail just because he was unprepared.

"If I find that woman," Kval growled, "I'll be sure to strangle the living hell out of her for making me go through all this..."

Just then, a Beowolf came lunging itself straight towards Kval from the side, but the young vessel wasted no time in cleaving the annoying creature in two with just a swing of his knife, killing it instantly.

"Tch!"

A gasp was heard.

Kval narrowed his eyes and turned to where the sound came from, but what met his eyes caught him off-guard.

 _A girl?_ he thought, _Judging by the look on her face, I'm assuming that she saw everything._

"W-Who...who are you?" the girl asked.

Kval remained stationed at where he was, and tilted his head to one side, his gaze never leaving the girl's face. As if on cue, the white portal which he had been looking for appeared right beside him, but the vessel didn't seem like he was about to leave just yet.

"You...have silver eyes," Kval commented, catching the girl by surprise. "You might know a thing or two..."

"U-Uh..." Ruby stuttered, "W-What do you mean? Know what?"

Kval clicked his tongue. "No matter. It's time for me leave." He turned to the portal and took a few steps towards it, but halted himself when the girl called out to him.

"Wait!" Ruby quickly went up to her feet at that, wincing. "Y-You didn't answer my question. Who are you?"

Kval just stood there in utter silence, but after a while, he focused his gaze onto the red reaper, and answered, "Kazuma. Kazuma Kval."

Before Ruby could come up with a reply, Kval entered the portal and left.

 **-IIXII-**

Weiss Schnee was anything but a fool. She was intelligent, agile, and deadly in terms of combat.

So why was she unable to move away when the large fist collided with her entire body?

The air left her lungs when it happened, and she was sent flying like a useless doll.

Only to slam her back into someone.

"Oof!"

Weiss sat up and held the side of her head in pain, not quite noticing the bright portal which was in the process of closing itself. She ignored the blood, but was then slightly confused when she noticed how soft the ground was.

"What the...?" Weiss looked down, and shrieked upon realising that she was sitting on someone. The heiress jumped to her feet and aimed her rapier at the person's throat, eyes narrowing. "Who are you? How did you even get in here!?"

"Do you not have any manners?" Kval grumbled. "Slamming into someone is rude, y'know that right?"

"Rude!? Me!?" Weiss yelled. "It's your fault for standing around like a complete dunce! That being said, who on Remnant are you!? You didn't answer my question!"

"Shut up, you brat," Kval grumbled, eyeing the heiress. "Or else."

Weiss squinted her eyes. "Or else-" Her eyes widened when a hand reached out and grabbed her by the throat. She was then held up high by the newcomer, and because of that, she got a clear view of his eyes.

Her face went pale in an instant.

"I warned you," Kval muttered, eyes glowing. He tightened his grip around the girl's throat, but then, the woman's warning quickly came to mind.

Apparently, he wasn't supposed to kill anyone.

Great.

"Tch..."

So instead, Kval tossed the annoying brat in the large suit of armor's direction, secretly enjoying the terrified scream which came from the heiress. He chuckled.

"That'll teach her."

A portal opened up behind him, and Kval simply took a few steps back with a small grin. He kept his gaze locked onto the heiress, who was being pounded over and over again by that walking suit of armor, and soon allowed the portal to devour him whole.

 **-IIXII-**

"Buy me some time!" Adam called out. He entered a stance and prepared his blade, eyeing the large machine in the distance.

"Are you sure?" Blake asked, worried.

"Do it!" Adam ordered.

And with that, Blake nodded and charged her way towards the large spider droid. She gave it a few slashes with her weapon, Gambol Shroud, but it didn't seem to do any damage. The large thing attempted to crush her with one of its legs, but she was fortunate enough to back away in time before it came down on her.

Blake loaded Gambol Shroud and prepared herself to charge in once more, but she froze when a bright portal opened up right in front of the spider droid. She narrowed her eyes, and was baffled to see someone casually walking out of it, with his back turned to the situation no less.

Apparently, the spider droid saw the person walking out of the portal as well, and it immediately branded him as an intruder. It lifted one of its legs up high, and quickly brought it down onto its target.

 **-IIXII-**

Kval kept grinning when the portal closed itself, and he chuckled. "If only I was able to get good look at her face. Acting all high and mighty would get you nowhere-"

"Watch out!" a voice called out to him.

"Eh?" Kval turned around, and his eyes widened when a large robot entered his line of sight. He summoned a small barrier in order to prevent the thing from squishing him like a pathetic bug, and proceeded to coat his right arm in dark green energy. "Killing me won't be that easy," He then allowed the barrier to break apart into pieces, and managed to catch the droid's leg with his hand. "you pathetic excuse for a robot."

Kval smirked, and in an instant, countless of green serpents came shooting out of the green energy which was gathered around his right arm. They locked their bright green orbs on the spider droid, and soon began their assault on its leg.

It only took seconds for them to tear the thing's limb apart.

 **-IIXII-**

Blake and Adam stared at the sight in utter shock. The two had been battling that thing for quite a while, and no signs of damage could be seen throughout their entire fight. But this newcomer practically destroyed one of the thing's legs like it was nothing but an old toy.

Now that's just downright impressive.

"Who is he?" Adam hovered his hand over the hilt of his trusted blade, eyes narrowing. "If he's a threat, then I will not hesitate to take him down."

"I don't think that's a good idea, Adam," Blake said. She winced when each and every one of the green serpents slammed themselves into the spider droid, successfully knocking the large weapon off the train they were on. Just what in the world were those serpents made of?

"He's looking at us," Adam warned. "Blake, get ready."

Blake nodded. "Okay."

Apparently, the two were unaware of the bright portal which appeared behind them.

Adam drew his blade when the vessel began to walk in their general direction. He gritted his teeth and tightened his grip around Wilt's hilt, sweat rolling down his forehead.

Blake eyed the newcomer as well, watching his every move. However, she was slightly surprised to see him looking right her, rather than Adam, who was actually the bigger threat.

Kval stopped a few feet away from where they were, and called out, "You."

"Me?" Blake furrowed her brows, lowering her guard a bit. She spared a brief glance towards Adam, before redirecting her gaze back onto the green-haired vessel. "What do you want?"

Kval placed his hands deep inside his pockets, and nearly laughed out loud when Adam lowered himself into a fighting stance. The guy seemed to be sweating all over, and the sight made him chuckle a bit. He wasn't _that_ dangerous, was he? "I'll only say this once."

Blake raised an eyebrow.

He smiled. "Thank you for the warning. I appreciate it."

The cat faunus wasn't expecting _that_ of all things. All she could do was stare at the guy with widened eyes, not knowing what to say in return. But in the end, all she could come up with was a simple, "S-Sure..."

"Now please, move aside. I need to get to that portal over there," Kval explained, gesturing to the portal behind them.

Blake looked around and jumped like a cat when the bright portal met her eyes. "W-What?" She eyed the portal up and down, confused as to how it even got there in the first place. "H-How did...?"

But Adam was having none of that. He aimed his red blade at the vessel's throat, and inquired, "Who are you? You're not going to get past me, so I suggest you answer my question."

Kval frowned. "Oh really now?"

Adam wanted to say something in return, but was unprepared when Kval suddenly rushed in and elbowed him in the face, successfully knocking him to the side. He quickly brought his blade down onto the ground so that he wouldn't fall off the train, but it was all in vain. Countless of green serpents appeared, and Adam could do nothing as they slammed into him, which ended up with him flying off the train and into the trees below.

Blake went wide-eyed upon witnessing the whole thing, and she wasted no time in preparing Gambol Shroud for combat. The green serpents turned to her, and she gulped, hands trembling. "I-I don't want any trouble."

"I don't either," Kval grumbled as he brushed past the girl's shoulder, allowing the serpents all around him to fade away into nothingness. He spared her a brief glance, and the priceless look which was plastered across her face managed to get a small chuckle out of him. "Later."

"H-Huh? W-Wait!" Blake called out, but was unable to do anything when she saw him entering the portal. She wanted to chase after him right then and there, but the moment the portal began closing itself, she knew that it was pointless. "J-Just...who is he?"

She lowered her guard, staring at the spot where the portal used to be.

Figuring that there was nothing else to do, Blake sat herself down on one of the crates around her, eyes downcast. She wasn't really worried about Adam, and to be honest, that guy just did her a huge favor without actually knowing it.

She wanted to escape, after all.

"Looks like I don't have to worry about Adam anymore..."

Blake smiled.

 **-IIXII-**

"Melanie, who is this girl?"

"I don't know Miltia, but we should teach her a lesson."

Yang should know by now that she greatly enjoyed hard challenges. So when she loaded her gauntlets, which were named by her as Ember Celica, she knew that things were about to get wild. She grinned, and the look on her face told her two opponents that she was more than capable enough of giving them a good beating.

The blonde entered a stance and prepared to fire off a couple of rounds with Ember Celica, but stopped herself at the very last second when someone who she didn't recognize came crashing down onto the floor. "Huh?"

Kval cursed, and proceeded to push himself off the floor with an annoyed expression. He then dusted off his clothes, and muttered, "Expect the unexpected, she said..." He looked above, just in time for him to see the portal closing itself. "Good for nothing..."

"Hey!" Miltia called out with a scowl, "You aren't supposed to be here. Leave. Now."

That was a big mistake on her part.

"And who are you," Kval turned to the girl, eyes turning to menacing slits. "to order me around?"

Miltia wanted to retort, truly she did, but the words died down in her throat the moment those pair of serpentine eyes glared at her. She gulped, and took a few steps back. "I-I..."

"For some odd reason, you remind me of that little brat..." Kval muttered.

"Leave her alone," Melanie warned with a glare, but just like her twin sister, she too paled when Kval began glaring at her. "U-Uh..."

"Whoa there! Let's not get into fights now!" Yang reasoned, which was a bit ironic coming from her. "That being said, how did you even get in here? I'm curious."

Kval turned to the blonde, and decided to humor her by answering, "Magic."

Yang wasn't satisfied with the guy's answer, and the way her cheerful expression changed to something much more serious was proof of that. Her eyes flickered to red, and she muttered, "Who are you?"

Kval tilted his head, staying silent.

"What is _that_!?" Melanie yelled out, sounding terrified.

"Huh?" Yang looked to Melanie, before realising that the girl was pointing at something just over her shoulder. Curiosity got the better of her, so she turned around, only to take a few steps back in utter shock when a bright portal entered her line of vision. "Holy cow!" she exclaimed, "What is that!?"

"My ticket to anywhere but here," Kval answered.

Yang turned around with a puzzled look. "What do you-" She wanted to ask, but was taken aback when Kval pushed her aside in order to get to the portal. But he made one crucial mistake. "Did you just touch my hair!?"

Kval was unable to deny the blonde's accusation when she literally blew up in flames. Luckily, because of the explosion he was sent flying into the portal's direction, and Kval couldn't help but be thankful for that.

 **-IIXII-**


	3. The Rose's Shining Beacon

**I'm back!**

 **I apologise for the late update. Internet has been acting cruel to me these past few days, for reasons that even I don't understand.**

 **Anyway, you guys have probably noticed a small change in my writing style. Instead of using FanFiction's line break, I decided that it would be best for me to use -IIXII- so that I can upload things through my mobile phone with ease. And plus, editing can be less painful this way, so yay!**

 **Now, on with the story!**

 **-IIXII-**

"Oof!"

Kval grumbled something under his breath as he pushed himself off the ground. He quickly dusted off his clothes while gazing at the closing portal, before sighing when it was out of sight.

"Damn blonde..." muttered the young vessel, before a small smile took over his face. "Though, I gotta thank her for sending me flying straight into the portal. Made my job a whole lot easier."

Figuring that his next portal wouldn't appear anytime soon, Kval looked around in order to take in his surroundings. And from what he can tell, judging by the tall buildings in the area and whatnot, he was in a city of sorts.

 _For a city, it sure seems quiet,_ Kval thought.

He looked around some more, and was actually tempted to enter one of the stores in the area in order to kill time, particularly the one which was right in front of him. Kval gazed at the name of the store, and soon narrowed his eyes.

 _FROM DUST TILL DAWN? What kind of-_

Before Kval was able to finish his thought, a red and black blur came crashing through the store's glass window, which ultimately made him jump in surprise. _What the...?_ He squinted his eyes when his gaze landed on a certain silver-eyed girl. _Wait, is that...?_

She stood a few feet away from where he was with her back turned to him, and apparently she was unaware of his presence. The girl proceeded to unfold her large scythe, and later brought it down onto the concrete ground in order to make herself look dangerous in front of her opponents.

Kval was curious as to who the young girl was fighting, and so he leaned to the side, only to see a handful of men in black suits rushing out of the store, each of them wielding a long red machete of sorts.

 _Are they blind?_ Kval thought, _The girl is wielding a weapon that is twice the size of her own body, and if they think that they are able to best her in a fight by swinging those worthless red sticks around, then..._

He sighed.

 _Idiocy at its best..._

Kval was unable to resist the urge to smile when the young girl began kicking her opponents' asses with ease, and if he was being honest, he was somewhat impressed. From what he could gather, she seemed to be one of those fast types in battle, and wielding a large scythe at that.

 _If we were to battle, then she would surely be a worthy opponent. Though, what's with the rose petals?_ Kval thought, frowning a bit.

 **-IIXII-**

"You were worth every cent, truly you were," Roman said with sarcasm as he gazed at the guys in the black suits who were sprawled across the street, all battered and bruised. Taking his cigar, he took a few steps forward and said, "Well, Red, I think we can all say it's been an eventful evening! And as much as I'd love to stick around," He aimed his cane at the scythe wielder. "I'm afraid this, is where we part ways."

Ruby narrowed her eyes. She entered a stance and prepared her scythe.

 **-IIXII-**

"She never did say that I can't interfere," Kval muttered. He smirked, and proceeded to lift his hand from his side. "Besides, what's wrong with having a bit of fun?"

 **-IIXII-**

Roman didn't know how it happened. It just did.

The moment he pulled the trigger of his trusted cane, some sort of barrier appeared right in the front of its barrel.

The results?

The explosive round blew right in his face, and he was sent flying back into the store, with his only weapon flying out of his grasp. So technically, right now he was as defenseless as a turtle without its trusted shell.

"What...the hell?" Roman coughed a couple of times. He attempted to stand back up to his feet, but was unprepared when a box filled with red Dust crystals came crashing down onto his head. But things didn't end there.

Because seconds later, each and every one of the crystals which were scattered all over the floor around Roman blew up.

Ruby stared in horror as the entire store was blown to smithereens, and she could've sworn she saw Roman Torchwick soaring through the air as if he was some sort of rocket, before crashing onto the top of a nearby building.

But look at the bright side. At least the store owner was safe from harm.

With a quick look to her left, Ruby could see the old man standing there with tears leaking from his eyes, no doubt that he was saddened to see his store getting blown up to bits. Speaking of which, what caused all this? And where on Remnant did that small barrier come from?

Ruby scratched her head, puzzled.

"Oh, I think I just overdid it..." a rather familiar voice said, which came from behind. "Oh well. Not like it's my problem."

Ruby furrowed her brows, and later turned around, only to gasped out loud when she saw who it was.

"It...couldn't be."

 **-IIXII-**

Kval sighed. He lowered his arm and, as if on cue, a bright portal opened up beside him. _About time,_ he thought.

He looked to the portal, but just when he was about to enter through it, a voice called out to him.

"Kazuma!"

He froze.

This wasn't right.

 _She...knows me? How?_ Kval thought to himself, wide-eyed. _Is this all connected? That damn woman never really told me...but, it wouldn't hurt to humor the girl a bit, would it?_

Now that he thought about it, where's the harm? He was not allowed to kill, sure, but interact was an entire different story. So technically, minus the killing, he could actually do whatever he wanted throughout this entire journey.

So with that thought in mind, Kval chuckled.

 **-IIXII-**

Ruby kept her gaze on him, but after a while of complete silence, he finally decided to turn to her, albeit slowly. She squinted her eyes, and was slightly caught off-guard to see him smiling, but was even _more_ caught off-guard when he began waving his hand at her.

 _W-What?_ was literally the only thing that she could think of. _I-Is he saying hello? S-Should I wave back? Oh Dust, where's Yang when I need her!? Maybe I should go and talk to him_ …

In the distance, the young vessel can be seen tilting his head to one side, looking all confused upon seeing the girl's reaction.

 _M-Maybe I'll start a conversation by asking him what his weapon is. Wait, that's a bad idea! H-He'll probably think I'm weird..._

Ruby was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she failed to see the young vessel leaving through the portal. Only when it closed did she finally realise her mistake.

She gasped. "H-He left!?"

 **-IIXII-**

"That was weird," Kval commented as he exited the portal. "I was actually expecting her to say something, but it seems to me that she wasn't in the mood to talk..." He shrugged. "Oh well."

"What do you have to say for yourself!?" a voice yelled out from the distance, which ultimately caught the young vessel's undivided attention.

Kval raised an eyebrow. _Why does that voice sound so familiar? But more importantly, why do I feel like I want to choke the owner of that very same voice to death? Weird. And seems like my portal isn't here, so I guess I should go-_

The sound of an explosion was heard.

"Okay," Kval looked to where the loud noise came from. "just what in the world is happening over there?"

 **-IIXII-**

"Unbelievable!" Weiss exclaimed like an angered child. "This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!"

Ruby pressed her pointer fingers together when the other girl kept glaring at her. She then lowered her head in shame, not daring herself to meet the other girl's icy gaze, before meekly saying, "I-I'm really, really sorry..."

"Ugh! You complete dolt!" the heiress yelled, and soon began to question, "What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?"

"W-Well I uh..." was all Ruby could come up with, but even if she _did_ have a proper answer, the heiress would have probably just interrupted her and kept on ranting. So either way, it was pointless.

"This isn't you ordinary-" Weiss wanted to yell, but ended up yelping in pain when a hand came in and smacked her upside the head. "Ow!"

"Aren't you a little loud for a tiny little midget?" a voice told her from behind.

Rubbing her sore spot, the heiress then immediately whirled herself around in order to face the person who had the audacity to assault her, and the fact that the person had called her tiny, little, and a midget made her even _more_ mad. "Who do you think-" Too bad the words died in her throat when she saw who it was.

Kval couldn't really believe how short the girl was. Hell, he didn't even need to move away his bangs to get a good look at her, because he literally needed to look _down_ in order to see her. He was taller, basically, and to the heiress, it made him look all the more frightening.

"W-What? H-How?" Ruby stared at the vessel, shocked.

"Y-You are..." Weiss stuttered, wide-eyed. "...t-the guy who...that time..." Despite how terrified she was of the vessel's eyes, she couldn't really find it in herself to look away. It's like if she did, she might end up regretting making the decision for the rest of her life. The reason to why she felt that way was beyond her.

"I'm flattered that you still remember me," Kval muttered.

Weiss wanted to say something in return, truly she did, but instead, a gasp left her lips when Kval suddenly raised a hand. As quick as lightning, the hand flew down towards her, and she immediately closed her eyes and covered her head. "Kyah!"

Silence filled the air.

Weiss was confused when nothing came slamming down onto her head, so being the curious little girl she was, she cracked an eye open to see where Kval's hand went, only to go wide-eyed when she saw that it was hovering over her head. Before she could prepare herself, the hand immediately came down, and she yelped when it made contact with her head.

"I just gave you a weak chop on the head. Loosen up a bit, will you?" Kval said, all the while staring at the heiress through half-lidded eyes. "That being said, I do not appreciate seeing you murdering this poor little girl with your words. So please, I urge you to stop."

"H-Huh?" Weiss stared up at him, rubbing her sore spot while doing so. "What do you-"

"Forget that!" Ruby exclaimed. "How are you always everywhere!? You were there at that time, and last night, and now you're here!" She then narrowed her eyes. "Are you...stalking me?"

Kval fixed the little scythe wielder with a blank stare, which unintentionally made her feel uncomfortable. He folded his arms, and said, "You're joking. And don't I at least deserve a thank you?"

Ruby scratched the back of her head at that, eyes downcast as a nervous laugh escaped her lips. "O-Oh yeah. Thank-"

"You!"

Before anyone had a chance to question who the person calling out to them was, a girl dressed up in black clothing came marching her way towards Kval and held a finger to his face.

The young vessel backed away a bit, eyeing the girl in confusion. "Uh...can I help you?"

The unnamed girl narrowed her eyes at him.

Kval lifted his eyebrows at the tiny reaction, and tilted his head to the side. "Miss?" he called out.

"It's me! Blake Belladonna!" the girl, who was now known to Kval as Blake, yelled out in his face. She then leaned in closer to him, and hissed, "Honestly, seeing you attending Beacon Academy does not sit well with me. What are you planning?"

Kval backed away a bit more when she leaned in, and just then, something clicked in his mind. He snapped his fingers. "Oh, you were that girl on the-" A hand came in and covered his mouth, much to his surprise. His gaze went down to the hand which was now covering his mouth, before he fixed the owner of said hand with a cold stare.

Blake simply returned the look, eyes narrowing. "I want you to stay quiet about what you saw on that day. I can't risk the people here knowing who I used to work for," she whispered. Her eyes then landed on a certain heiress, and she added, "Especially her."

 _What in the world is she even talking about?_ Kval thought, annoyed. _And_ _where's that stupid portal when you need it?_

As if the angels had answered his prayers, a bright portal appeared in the distance. Kval gave a sigh of relief at that, but for some odd reason, something didn't feel right. He looked to the one whose name was Blake, and saw her staring at the portal. _I'll just leave now,_ he thought.

Without warning, Ruby came in and grabbed onto the boy's sleeve, taking him by surprise. "You're not leaving until you tell me who you really are! So explain yourself!"

"Huh?" Blake turned to Ruby. "You know him as well?"

"Well yeah! This guy has been appearing everywhere!" Ruby exclaimed. "It's messing with my head and it's not even funny!" she shouted, but despite how angry she was, the young girl still managed to make herself look cute.

"He interrupted my training session once! In my very own home!" Weiss joined in. "How he managed to pass through all the staff members and security is beyond me! He should be handed to the police for breaking and entering!"

Ruby gasped. "You too?"

"Why of course! This man here has got a lot of explaining to do!" Weiss stated with her head held high, but the slight shaking of her legs told everyone that she was still somewhat afraid of Kval, particularly his eyes.

The two girls nodded their heads in agreement, and later glared at Kval.

"I see." Blake cupped her chin and proceeded to lock her gaze onto the mysterious boy as well, who seemed to be acting all calm despite all the attention he was getting. She squinted her eyes, and asked, "Who are you?"

"His name is Kazuma Kval," Ruby whispered to the bow wearing girl from where she stood. "He told me the first time we met."

"Oh really?" Blake began tapping her foot on the ground, her eyes still trained on a certain vessel. "Is there anything else that you would like to add? Where he's from, perhaps?"

"I-I don't know," Ruby stuttered, grinning sheepishly. "S-Sorry, but all I know about him is his name."

Blake squinted her eyes even more at that. "Hmm..."

"You guys do realise that I'm still here, right?" Kval told them, eyes half-lidded. "It's rude to simply talk about someone when that very same person whom you're talking about is standing right in front of you. Really," He shook his head. "where are your manners?"

"I say we catch him!" Ruby yelled all of a sudden, and to her surprise, Weiss and Blake actually nodded, which meant that they agreed with her crazy and yet brilliant idea.

"Eh?"

Kval stared at the three girls, as they attempted to surround him like he was some sort of animal. He knew he could take them all at once, truly he did, but despite that, he can't help but find himself sweating profusely when they slowly approached him, being as cautious as possible.

 _I'm not supposed to hurt anyone,_ he thought. _Well, harm I can, but it's kill that I can't. Even then, I'm not quite fond with the idea of me beating up a group of girls. That's just plain-_

"Now!" Weiss yelled.

The three girls jumped at him at the same time from all sides, but try as they might, Kval's quick reflexes managed to save him from being captured. And so with that, they landed on the ground, lying on top of one another.

Ruby groaned as she slowly went to her feet, wincing every now and then. Her eyes soon found themselves focused on Kval, and she immediately called out, "W-Wait!"

"Better luck next time!" Kval said to her as he turned and ran, jumping straight into his portal soon after that.

Ruby wanted to chase after him, but decided to release a small sigh instead when she saw the portal closing itself. "Rats..." she grumbled.

That really could've gone better, but at least they tried.

 _Together._

Ruby smiled at the thought.

"If you think that I have forgiven you for what you've done earlier, then do me a favor and think again," Weiss called out from behind, making the red reaper wince.

 **-IIXII-**

"She's a hazard to my health!" Weiss yelled at the blonde with a cold glare, but was somewhat surprised to see her returning the glare without flinching. But even then, despite knowing that she needed all the sleep she could get for tomorrow, Weiss needed this blonde buffoon to know the reason why she thought her little sister was insufferable and annoying.

However, before anyone could say anything else, a bright portal appeared directly above them.

And not a second later, out came the boy whom Ruby, Weiss, and Blake tried to capture not longer than a few hours ago.

The poor vessel crashed onto the floor with a loud thud, groaning in pain moments later. And from what the others could gather, he seemed to be oblivious to his surroundings, despite all the attention he was getting.

The three girls would've preferred more if he stayed that way so that they could jump at him, if it weren't for their fellow blonde, that is.

"You!" Yang yelled, eyes flickering to red.

"Huh?" Kval looked up, only to pale slightly when the familiar faces of people he did _not_ want to meet met his eyes. "Oh dear..."

Ruby gasped. She stared at her older sister with widened eyes, utterly shocked. "You know him too!?"

"What!?" Blake exclaimed. "Her too!?"

"Oh I know him alright!" Yang yelled, before the look of pure confusion settled itself onto her face. She turned to her younger sibling, but made sure to keep her eyes trained on Kval just in case if he tried anything funny. " _Too_? What do you mean by that, Ruby?"

"Give me a break..." Kval muttered, exhausted beyond belief. "Just give me my damn portal so I could leave..."

 **-IIXII-**

 **I'm guessing that a lot of you weren't expecting the sudden changes in RWBY which were caused by Kval, so as a heads up, more changes will occur in the future.**

 **Oh yeah, from my calculations, Phenomenon Intervention will have at least 20 chapters. And remember when I said that the story will end in Volume 5? Well, I think I'm just going to cut it down to Volume 4 instead. Other than that, I think I'll just keep the events in order, and to know which RWBY episode the chapter takes place in, read the title. I decided to combine the titles of RWBY episodes to make things easier, and I have to admit that it was fun. Oh, and each chapter will take place in two episodes, but there'll be a few skips here and there, so there's that.**

 **By the way, I still accept requests, so send 'em in if any of you have any! And thanks for the thoughtful reviews!**

 **This is CPL, over and out.**


	4. The Players' Badges And Their Burdens

**CPL...is back! I** **sincerely** **apologise for slacking around, but I'm back! Exams nearly murdered my soul! My soul I tell you!**

 **Anyway, reviews!**

 **moki0316: I know I know, PI is a bit lacking, and I'm working on it. In fact, the bits and pieces of important developments will start happening in the next update, if I play my cards right that is. And do keep in mind that this is my creation for the Monty Oum Project, so uh...hehe...don't take the whole story too seriously. And Summer's true identity can wait until Phase II comes out, but it's pretty obvious already. Still, thanks quite a bunch for the thoughtful review!**

 **GameboyNinjaUltimate Icarus: Glad you enjoyed their interactions! And yeah, that's going to happen sooner or later...**

 **shadowedge27: I'm working on it. Thank** **you** **for the review, along with those ideas you gave me! I'm still having trouble trying to connect the whole thing though, but I'll try my best!**

 **The 10th Wand: Well I'm glad you enjoyed their interactions! Just wait until you see Kval kicking the shit out of Adam's ass right in front of Blake in Volume...3...I mean...whoops? Was that intentional? I think not!**

 **Flashback Trip Syndrome: Thank you for the long and thoughtful review, my friend. I'll be sure to take careful steps from now on, and I'll do my best! Also, trust me when I say that Kval will change a whole lot of events in V3...hehe...**

 **Now, let us charge into the land of fiction!**

 **-IIXII-**

"Great! The gang's all here! Now we can die together!" Yang exclaimed, being sarcastic of course.

"Not if I can help it," Ruby said.

Yang's eyes widened. "Ruby, wait!" she called out, but was too late.

Ruby let out a loud cry as she charged her way towards the large Deathstalker, all the while ignoring the warnings which came from her older sibling along with the others.

This was it. The Grimm was within her range. Now, all she needed to do was land a handful of blows with her beloved scythe and-

A white portal opened up right beside her.

"Oof!"

Before she knew it, Ruby was knocked to the side by a certain green-haired vessel.

 **-IIXII-**

"What on Remnant!?" Glynda exclaimed, wide-eyed.

Ozpin lifted his eyebrows a bit, his eyes trained onto the screen of his scroll device. "Hmm? This is..."

 **-IIXII-**

 _What the heck did I just crash into?_

Kval rubbed his sore gut and looked around, just in time to notice Ruby, who was sprawled across the ground, in the process of sitting herself up with a dazed look across her face. From the looks of it, it appeared that she hadn't noticed him yet.

 _So it was her..._

And yes, his gut was sore. The blonde's punch was off the charts, and she was the very same reason why he was sent flying into his portal in the first place.

Hell, women were scary.

And besides, it wasn't his fault that he accidentally touched her hair without permission. He just wanted to get to his portal.

"Ruby!" a rather familiar voice called out.

 _T-That voice_ , Kval thought, paling a bit. _It couldn't be, right?_

"Get out of there!" the same voice from before yelled out.

Kval narrowed his eyes, and later turned so that he was facing Ruby. "Get out of here? What-" He nearly choked on his own spit when a large scorpion creature entered his line of sight. "W-What the hell is that!?"

"And you!" the blonde yelled, directing her attention to Kval. "I don't know how you got there, but stay away from my sister!"

Kval winced. "Of course she saw me..."

 **-IIXII-**

"I-It's him again!" Blake exclaimed, wide-eyed.

"If he so much as touches my cute sister then I will make sure to bury him six feet under!" Yang roared.

Weiss began to sweat. "Aren't we...forgetting something?"

"The...Deathstalker?" Jaune said. "That being said, who is that guy?" He turned to the other three people who stood beside him for answers, only to receive confused looks in return.

 **-IIXII-**

Kval pulled out his knives and faced the Deathstalker, but was confused to see the creature turning away from him, as if it wasn't interested in fighting him. Curious, the vessel looked to where it was looking at, and was somewhat taken aback to see the creature aiming its stinger in Ruby's direction, who was still dazed.

 _Shit,_ thought Kval, _Am I supposed to save her? I mean, this girl is somewhat annoying and na_ _茂_ _ve, but...it would be a shame to watch her die so early. And I'd really hate to see her skills go to waste...by this creature of all things._

The Deathstalker screeched and brought down its stinger.

 _I just hope this won't bite me in the ass later on..._

Ruby shook her head in order to clear her head, only to yelp when something crashed into her stomach, which ended up with her rolling a few feet away from where she originally was. "Ow..." She slowly opened her eyes, and gasped when Kval came into view, whose face was just a few inches away from her own. "U-Um..." A bright blush formed onto her cheeks. "U-Uh...you're...close..."

"You should be grateful," Kval muttered, looking annoyed. "If it weren't for me, then you'd probably be dead for all I know. Watch your surroundings next time." He pushed himself off of Ruby and went up to his feet, which allowed her to sit herself up, all the while oblivious to how the young girl was feeling. "Anyway-"

One of the Deathstalker's pincers came in and slammed itself into Kval's side, knocking him away.

Ruby gasped as some of the vessel's blood splattered across her right cheek, and all she did was sit there in shock. Only when the Deathstalker turn to her did she finally regain her bearings and realise where she currently was. However, the shock from witnessing the horrid sight a few moments earlier was still in effect, and her legs wouldn't obey her commands, no matter how hard she tried. She looked to where Crescent Rose was located, and paled a bit upon noticing that it was _way_ out of her reach.

Ruby quickly moved her gaze to the Deathstalker, and the two were then locked in a staring contest. She knew for a fact that if she were to look away right then and there, then the Grimm would waste no time in crushing her with its pincers. Either that, or she'd have a new hole in her gut, courtesy of the Grimm's golden stinger.

"Get out of there!" Jaune shouted.

"I'm coming, Ruby!" Yang called out, her voice filled with nothing but worry.

"You dolt! Move!" Weiss yelled, no doubt that she was getting worried as well.

With its patience thinning, the Deathstalker slowly approached its helpless prey and prepared its golden stinger.

 _I-Is this...the end?_ thought Ruby.

As if on cue, the Deathstalker let out a loud screech and rushed forward.

Ruby shut her eyes and shielded her face with her arms, only to flinch when a familiar voice reached her ears.

 **"Are you seriously just going to sit there!?** "

Suddenly, some sort of green energy in the shape of a large serpent came slamming itself into the side of the Deathstalker, stunning it momentarily. But not long after that, a familiar red scythe came spinning through the air, flying in the Grimm's direction, before it was lodged into one of the creature's eyes. But the attacks did not end there, however. Seconds later, more and more serpents came slamming into the Deathstalker from all sides.

 **"No pressure or anything, but I just broke a few ribs and an arm to save your skin, so the least you could do is run! That being said, hurry up and run!"**

"E-Eh?" Ruby backed away from the Grimm while she was still on the ground, and jumped a bit when a pair of hands pulled her up to her feet. With a quick look, it appeared that the one who helped her up was her older sister, Yang. Weiss was also there in fact, who was lowered into a fighting stance with her rapier in hand. "Y-Yang? Weiss?"

"No time for that, Ruby! We need to get out of here!" Yang said.

"For once, I agree," Weiss sounded.

"B-But..." Ruby turned to the Deathstalker, her legs trembling a bit. "...my scythe is-"

A black and white blur came slamming itself into the Deathstalker's face before Ruby could even finish her sentence, and it was then later revealed to be none other than Kazuma Kval. The vessel had the red scythe secured tightly in his grip. He then released a loud growl as he pulled the weapon out of the creature's eye, which caused it to screech in utter pain. "Shut up!" Kval shouted, and proceeded to throw the now freed Crescent Rose in Ruby's direction.

"Eep!" Ruby jumped back, just in time to see her beloved weapon stuck itself into the spot where she stood just moments ago. "W-Watch it!" She turned to glare at Kval, but what met her eyes rendered her speechless.

 **"Roll over!"**

A large green portal appeared underneath the Deathstalker, and moments later, out came a large serpent with its fangs bared. The Grimm could do nothing as it was sent high up in the air by the serpent, and started screeching loudly when gravity began working its magic. Soon after the Deathstalker fell down and connected its back with the ground, creating a large-sized crater as results.

Kval stood there with his breathing labored, facing the upside down Grimm alone while clutching at his injured left arm. He was emitting some sort of green energy, but seconds later it faded away completely. The vessel turned away from the large scorpion and moved his gaze to the girls, who were too stunned to say anything, Ruby in particular. "You," he called out. "I told you to run. Why didn't you?"

"H-Huh?" Ruby eyed the vessel, and shook her head. "Forget that! Just look at yourself! You're injured! Why aren't you using your Aura?"

Kval cocked an eyebrow. He opened his mouth to speak, only to end up coughing up a bit of blood. "Gah! T-The heck...is an Aura? Never heard of it."

The air grew silent.

Kval narrowed his eyes upon noticing the stares he was getting, and all he said in response was, "Unless you're good with healing magic, staring at my injuries with those looks on your faces is considered rude, y'know."

"N-No...Aura?" Ruby muttered, wide-eyed.

"Are you even human?" Yang asked, equally shocked.

"How is this even possible?" Weiss muttered.

Kval sighed. "Just get out of my sight, you three. I didn't plan on saving little strawberry over there just so I could watch her end up in a dangerous situation again. Go."

"B-But-" Ruby protested, only to silence herself when a sharp glare was sent her way.

"Go. Now." Kval turned around so that he was facing the Deathstalker, which was in the process of recovering itself. "I have this thing to deal with, and I can't afford to deal with the three of you at the same time. That would end up killing me."

"You better not die..." Yang muttered, much to Kval's surprise. "And thank you...for saving Ruby. I appreciate it."

"Whatever..." Kval responded. "Now go." He could hear their footsteps as the three ran to join in with the others in the distance, and he couldn't help but feel a bit relieved because of that. The reason to that was beyond him though. "Finally."

As quick as lightning, something came slamming itself into Kval's back, much to his surprise. It felt like a fist. A small one.

Still, the pain it caused was above average, if only for a bit.

"Gah!"

Kval turned around with a glare, and the first thing which met his eyes were the silver orbs of Ruby Rose. The look on her face showed concern, and it didn't help that red rose petals could be seen drifting down around her, which unintentionally made the sight of her face much more beautiful than it should have originally been.

His cheeks began to redden, much to his shock.

 _E-Eh? T-The hell are you blushing for!? Kazuma Kval, get a damn grip on your pathetic self!_ the young vessel scolded himself internally, sweating slightly.

"Y-You better survive this, y-you hear? And I'll be sure to thank you properly the next time we meet..." Ruby gazed up at Kval, then added, "Promise me."

"I-I...sure," Kval said, feeling unsure of himself. "I promise."

Ruby nodded, and ran off to the others with the help of her Semblance. Thus, leaving Kval standing there on his own in utter silence.

 _I...can't believe I just did that,_ thought Kval, as he turned his attention back to the now recovered Deathstalker. _Oh well. A promise is a promise. Besides, I have a feeling that we're going to cross paths with one another again in the future..._

The Deathstalker screeched loudly and rushed its way towards Kval, no doubt that it was pissed off for all the things the vessel had done to it for the past few minutes.

"As much as I would love to deal with you first," Kval lifted up a hand, and later brought it down. As if on cue, countless of green serpents appeared above the large scorpion and came down on it all at once, stunning it momentarily. "it would be fair if the bird were to receive severe punishment for watching our entire fight instead of participating."

True to his words, a large Nevermore came diving down towards him from above, but he was undeterred to say the least.

"Ouroboros."

Kval shot his arm out in the Nevermore's direction and, in an instant, the Nox Nyctores Geminus Anguium: Ouroboros came shooting itself out from his sleeve. Despite how far his target was, Ouroboros soared through the air as if it was powered by a couple of rocket boosters.

The Nevermore took note of the chain and attempted to move out of the way, only to shriek in pain when Ouroboros came in and locked its jaws onto its left wing. The weapon may have been small, but it still stung. Though, that was to be expected from a Nox Nyctores.

"Time to bring you down, you oversized chicken!" Kval clenched his teeth. He held the chain in a tight grip and pulled it down with all the strength he could muster. The satisfying shriek which came from the Nevermore brought a small smirk to his face, before the sound of something big crashing down onto the ground in the far distance was heard. Figuring that the bird was no longer a threat, at least for the time being, the vessel pulled Ouroboros back into his sleeve and dusted off his clothes. "I'm glad that's over with..."

Suddenly, the Deathstalker from before came in and attempted to knock Kval away with its right pincer, only for the vessel to jump out of the way thanks to his quick reflexes.

"Whoa there!" Kval backed away from the large scorpion with a shit-eating grin on his face. He held up his hands as if to calm it down, and said, "You seem pretty pissed at me for some reason. Care to explain?"

The Deathstalker merely screeched in response.

"I'm sorry, but can you run that by me again?" Kval taunted, his grin widening a few inches. To his surprise, however, a bright portal opened up beside him, which meant that he had to leave. The young vessel sighed at that, seemingly disappointed. "I was actually looking forward to tearing you apart, piece by piece, but...seems to me that my ride is here. Later, vermin."

The Deathstalker gave another screech and rushed forward, but it was too late.

Kval had already left.

 **-IIXII-**

Ruby gazed up at Ozpin, her eyes filled with nothing but doubt and sadness. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"I mean it's only been one day." Ozpin chuckled. "Ruby, I've made more mistakes than any man, woman, and child on this planet. But at this moment, I would not consider your appointment to leader to be one of them." He leaned forward, eyeing his troubled student with a comforting smile on his face. "Do you?"

Ruby went completely silent at that, processing each and every one of the man's words with her eyes trained down onto the floor.

"Being a team leader isn't just a title you carry into battle, but a badge you wear constantly," explained Ozpin. "If you are not always performing at your absolute best, then what reason do you give others to follow you?" He examined the girl's face closely, and figuring that she at least understood the gist of it, he turned around. "You have been burdened with a daunting responsibility, Ruby. I advise you take some time...to think about how you will uphold it."

Ruby remained silent, and merely nodded in response, despite knowing the fact that Ozpin couldn't see it with his back turned to her. With no words to say, she turned and walked away, deep in thought.

Ozpin spared the young girl a brief glance from the corner of his eyes, and later took a small sip of his coffee. _Poor girl,_ he thought. _Burdened with something so heavy...at such a young age at that. But she's very determined, so why stop her? That being said..._

Ozpin narrowed his eyes.

"Reveal yourself this instant. I do not take kindly to eavesdroppers."

The air grew extremely silent, but then, a small chuckle resonated throughout the empty hallway.

Ozpin took another sip of his coffee, and squinted his eyes as he waited for his observer to come forward.

"Seems that I have been found out. I applaud you." Kval stepped out from his hiding spot, which appeared to be one of the nearby pillars. A wide smile was plastered across his face. "Hi there."

"Kazuma Kval, correct?" Ozpin guessed, much to the vessel's shock. "I've been watching you, and I've grown wary of your recent actions. Pray tell, Mister Kval. What are you doing wandering around in the hallways of _my_ academy?"

"How do you know my name?" Kval inquired, unintentionally dodging the question. His wide smile was now nowhere to be seen, but the vessel paid it no mind.

"Well, let's just say..." Ozpin tilted his head to one side. "...a dusty old crow told me. That being said, I am Headmaster Ozpin, but you can just simply call me Ozpin, if you so prefer."

"Ozpin...huh." The vessel cocked an eyebrow. "And a dusty old crow? Care to explain?"

" _I_ am the one asking questions around here, Mister Kval. Not you," Ozpin clarified.

"That sounds like a warning to me, but whatever. Go ahead. Shoot." Kval set his hands within his pockets, but something told him that he shouldn't let his guard down, so he didn't. "I don't have much time though, so be quick about it."

"Very well then." Ozpin adjusted his glasses. "I do not expect a clear answer, but what is your reason for spying on Team RWBY?"

"I...beg your pardon?" Kval raised an eyebrow, genuinely confused.

"Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long. Together, they are known as Team RWBY," Ozpin explained, his gaze hardening. "The question has been bothering my mind for quite a while. Why are you keeping a close eye on them? In fact, you've even personally met each of the girls before they attended my academy, so clearly there's a reason behind your actions."

"The old crow told you all this, I take it?" Kval asked, only for him to receive a cold stare from the white-haired man in return. He sighed. "Yeah, I've been following the girls around. I admit it. But please, rest assured that I harbor no ill will against any of them...other than the one with white hair, of course. She has a knack of getting under my skin, so..."

Hey, at least he was being honest about this.

Ozpin examined the vessel's face for any signs of hidden motives, and later took a small sip of his coffee before asking, "Tell me, Mister Kval. Who do you work for?"

Kval lifted his eyebrows a bit at the question, genuinely confused once more. "I'm...not quite sure what you mean."

Ozpin wanted to ask more questions regarding Kval himself, truly he did, but the sudden appearance of a bright portal prevented him from doing so. And if he was even in the least bit taken aback by the mere sight of the portal, then he did a pretty good job at hiding it.

"Well, it looks like my portal is here. I apologise, Ozpin," Kval offered the man a small smile, and turned so that he was facing the portal. "but I think it's time I take my leave. I am needed elsewhere."

"So soon?" Ozpin sounded.

"I have little time on my side, so you could say that I'm..." Kval swiftly whirled around and parried an incoming attack with his knives, locking eyes with Ozpin, and later allowed his gaze to wander to the man's cane. "...busy."

"Hmmm..." Ozpin held out his free hand, just in time for him to save his favorite coffee mug from crashing down onto the cold floor. He must've threw it up in the air at some point. "So it would seem." He pulled his cane away from Kval and took a few steps back, his eyes never leaving the vessel.

Kval smirked, kept his knives, and soon made his way to the portal, but not before saying, "Take good care of your students now, Headmaster Ozpin. I'm actually looking forward to our next meeting."

 **-IIXII-**

 **Kval has either made an enemy, or a friend. I honestly don't know which, so you guys get to choose.**

 **Anyway, t** **hanks** **quite a lot** **for reading** **and please leave a review so that I can improve my way of writing** **! Stay safe** **now** **, and have a good day!**

 **This is CPL, over and out.**


	5. The Stray In Forever Fall

**I'm back!**

 **I honestly don't think you** **reader** **s will need an explanation chapter for Phenomenon Intervention in LOAA. You all pretty much know the basics of this story, so why bother, right?**

 **Anyway, reviews!**

 **EpicLinkSam: Thank you. And to answer your question, I...tend to play around with minor characters rather than the main ones. To me they're interesting, you see. Kval is the same, and he is a special case at that! I mean he was thrown into the Boundary after getting separated from Terumi, and you can easily make a crossover story out of that! Plus, I feel sorry for the poor guy. And could you imagine a student like him who learns magic roaming around in Beacon Academy? With a bit of Ozpin's help, he could easily fit right in! Gah! I'm rambling agai** **n aren't I?**

 **The 10th Wand: True that! Ozpin will probably view Kval as a threat throughout the whole story, but it might change depending on his actions and whatnot. That being said, just imagine how Kval's encounter with Ozpin's dusty old crow will go down...**

 **Now, let** **u** **s begin.**

 **-IIXII-**

"So...how do I do this?"

Ruby examined the tree in front of her, and later did the exact same thing to the large jar in her hand, before moving her eyes to the same tree once more. She squinted her eyes, and slowly reached for Crescent Rose when an idea happened to form itself inside her brilliant mind.

Well, as brilliant as the mind of a fifteen year old can be, that is.

"Maybe if I cut it down, then..."

"Ruby!" Yang called out, causing the exact same person who she was calling for to wince unintentionally. "Don't wander off too far, you hear me? Professor Goodwitch said that this place was crawling with Grimm, and I wouldn't want to see you in the same situation like last time...back in initiation. Be careful."

"I'll be fine, Yang," Ruby replied, frowning a bit. "I have Crescent Rose with me."

"If you say so," was the last thing Yang said, before she went off to get more of the red sap from the trees all around.

Ruby sighed. "I can't believe she's still bothered by that incident. But...it's not like I can blame her. Yang's my sister, and it's her job to look out for me. And if it weren't for him..."

An image of Kazuma Kval entered her mind.

Ruby swiped at the tree with her scythe, and smiled a bit when some of its red sap began to ooze out. "I'll be sure to thank him later. Though, I wonder if his arm is healed up?"

The sound of leaves being stepped on was heard, and Ruby immediately dropped the jar she'd been holding and pulled out Crescent Rose. She scanned her surroundings, and later squinted her eyes upon noticing how quiet it was. _Show yourself, Grimm,_ she thought.

An eerie silence filled the air.

Ruby tightened her grip around Crescent Rose, eyes darting back and forth from side to side. She was ready. Her mind was ready. Anything that would appear will be as good as-

"Boo."

Ruby whirled around and swung Crescent Rose in a wide arc, only to gasp when Kazuma Kval came into view. She stopped her weapon from slicing off the vessel's head from his body, albeit barely, and soon dropped herself down onto the ground, panting.

Kval chuckled. "You could have killed me, y'know that right?"

"T-That was entirely your fault!" Ruby exclaimed. "Don't go sneaking up on people like that! Especially me!"

"Ruby," Yang called out, "is everything okay back there?"

Ruby went wide-eyed, and turned to where her sister was located. "Y-Yeah! Everything's fine!" she lied. "Totally fine!"

Kval lowered himself down to the girl's level, and proceeded to give her a swift chop on the head. Despite that, a casual smile was plastered across his face. "Lying is bad, kid," he said. "Keep that up and you'll end up facing a troublesome situation."

Ruby swatted the vessel's hand away, pouting as she did. "I _lied_ because I know for a fact that my sister would kill you the first moment she sees you," she explained. "Do you _want_ to get beaten up by Yang of all people?"

"Ah." Kval nodded at that, sweating a bit. "Good point."

Ruby, who now decided to stay on the ground, began eyeing the artificial human up and down. She cupped her chin while doing so, and later found her gaze wandering over to the long bangs which hid his eyes. _He...doesn't seem that intimidating, to be honest,_ she thought. _But...I can't go judging a book by its cover. I've seen what he's capable of._

Kval took note of this, and simply took action by chopping the girl on the forehead. "It's rude to stare."

Ruby winced, one eye closed. She made no effort to move Kval's hand away from her forehead, however, but instead she gently took it with her own hands and held it there.

Kval lifted his eyebrows. He gazed at his hand, which was being held by Ruby, and tilted his head to the side in confusion shortly after. To say that he was a bit weirded out by this was an understatement. "You're...holding my hand," he pointed out.

"So?" Ruby moved her eyes to meet his face, and grinned a mischievous grin. "This way, you wouldn't be able to escape."

Kval stared at her. "Really?"

Ruby returned the stare, determined. "Really."

And with that, the two went silent.

Slowly, Kval attempted to pull his hand away from the little girl's forehead, but was quite surprised to find her hold tighter than expected. He did it again the second time, this time adding in a bit of effort, but was met with the same results as before, much to his chagrin.

"You're not getting away this time!" Ruby declared, grinning smugly. She winced, however, when Kval started pulling his hand repeatedly in an attempt to separate it away from her forehead, looking quite nervous. "O-Ow! Hey! Don't pull too hard!"

"Then let go!" Kval gazed down at the little reaper, sweating slightly. "For someone like you, you sure know how to keep something in place. What in the world have you been doing with those hands of yours...?"

"Someone like _me_? What does that supposed to mean?" Ruby pouted, feeling a bit offended. "And I need to have a tight grip if I want to slay Grimm with Crescent Rose."

 _Ah. So that's the name of those creatures I've fought with earlier,_ Kval thought. _Interesting..._

"Someone like you wouldn't understand," added Ruby.

"Need I remind you that _I_ was the one who saved your skin?" Kval reminded, forcing a wide smile despite being annoyed at the girl's childish attitude.

That seemed to get a reaction out of her.

"S-Sorry..." Ruby went silent at that, eyes downcast. "And...thank you. For saving me, I mean. That being said, how is your arm?"

The vessel sighed. "Healed, along with my ribs."

A nervous laugh escaped the girl's lips. She scratched the back of her head with a sheepish look, and said, "Y-Your ribs? A-Ahaha...I totally forgot about those...sorry..."

"No need for that. Anyway," Kval smirked. "where is my proper thank you? You promised me one, remember? I kept mine, so it's fair if you were to fulfill yours."

And indeed he did. The girl specifically told him to survive against those creatures of Grimm, and he did just that. Kval can't say that he wasn't looking forward to what she had in store for him.

"What are you talking about?" Ruby frowned. "I've already thanked you a few seconds ago. What more could you possibly want?"

Kval clicked his tongue at that. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out when a low growl was heard, courtesy of his stomach.

"Ah." Ruby stared at the artificial human, as a playful smirk played across her lips. "You're hungry."

"Quiet you..." grumbled Kval.

It's not like it was his fault that he was hungry. After being thrown into this world by that damn woman in order to jump through multiple portals, Kval hadn't had a chance to sit down and eat anything. That being said, he wasn't even sure what kind of money the people in this world were using, so if he wanted food, he had to steal. And if Kval didn't want to starve to death, then the stealing would have to happen sooner or later.

Unless...

"Hey, how good are you at cooking?" Kval asked, catching the girl's full attention.

"Huh?" Ruby narrowed her eyes a bit at the sudden question, but she answered it anyway. "I've got the basics down, so I'm pretty good. Why?"

So she _was_ good at cooking. This could actually work.

Kval chuckled. "Well, I was just thinking..."

Ruby tilted her head to one side, her eyes filled with nothing but curiosity. "Thinking?"

"As thanks for saving your skin, why not cook for me?" Kval suggested.

Silence filled the cold air.

"Huh?" Ruby stared at him.

"We're going to cross paths with one another again in the future, little strawberry. Trust me." Kval sighed. "I've not eaten anything in a while, so the least you could do is cook something for the person who'd saved your skin."

"Cross paths in the future? What does that even mean? And how do you even know that?" Ruby asked, her eyes narrowing. "I'm still curious to know as to why you keep appearing everywhere. Around me and my teammates of all people."

Kval grinned. "It means what it means, little straw-"

"Stop calling me that, will you? Fine. I'll cook something for you, but just this once." Ruby grumbled something under her breath, her gaze moving elsewhere. "So, what is it that you want?"

Kval answered the question in a heartbeat.

"A batch of boiled eggs."

Ruby stared at the vessel, caught off-guard. She honestly wasn't expecting _that_ of all things. In fact, she was actually expecting him to say something along the lines of a meal for a wealthy person, which she would've declined immediately, but it seemed that she was mistaken entirely. "You're...weird," was all Ruby could come up with. "Is...that it? A batch of boiled eggs?"

Kval smirked. "Well, if you're generous enough to cook more for me then-"

"Nope! Boiled eggs it is then," Ruby interrupted, much to the vessel's amusement.

 **-IIXII-**

Kval wouldn't admit it, but he was _really_ starting to feel uneasy. It's been nearly half an hour since he'd arrived, and this was the longest he'd ever been in one place throughout this whole troublesome journey, or whatever that damn woman liked to call it.

But hey, at least he had company.

"So Weiss was being mean to me throughout the whole day. She even hurt my feelings after Grimm Studies, and left me all alone in one of Beacon's empty hallway. Then after that, Headmaster Ozpin came to me and said something along the lines of..." Ruby rambled and rambled, quite lost in her own little story.

 _She sure is talkative. And somehow, I like that white-haired girl even less now._ Kval smiled, only to feel slightly nervous when a thought occurred to him. _I wonder what her reaction would be if I told her that Ozpin assaulted me with his cane right after that conversation he had with her?_

"I don't how it happened, but she was actually being nice to me! It was as if she was a completely different person!" Ruby exclaimed, wide-eyed. "I honestly felt a bit weirded out for the first few seconds..."

"Ah, I see." Kval nodded. "It seems that even the Ice Queen herself has the ability to show kindness to others. I'm surprised, truly I am. What's next, she's able to poop out ice cubes after every time she yells at someone?"

Ruby giggled at the comment. "She'd kill you if you were to say that straight to her face."

"Oh?" Kval smirked. "Heh. I'd love to see her try and fail miserably. That way, I'd laugh in her face so hard that she _will_ end up pooping out ice cubes! How that is possible is beyond me though."

The two sat across from one another under a tree with a handful of jars filled with red sap surrounding them. One mostly talked while the other mostly listened. It surely goes without saying that Kval was beginning to enjoy sitting there while listening to Ruby's silly little stories about her adventures in Beacon Academy, if one may even call it that. Heck, he even learned a lot about her too, and that's saying something.

At some point, Ruby had decided to release his hand, saying that she at the very least trusted him that he wouldn't run off to anywhere else. Whatever that meant, anyway. But Kval honestly had to admit that when it came to others, the girl was a bit too trusting for her own good.

"S-Stop that!" Ruby laughed, but then her eyes widened when she recalled something, before a wide grin made itself known across her features. "Ooh! There was this one time where Yang thrashed this one bar located somewhere in Vale-"

Kval immediately held up a hand, motioning for the girl to stop. "I know how that one went down, so there is no need for that. Anyway, what about that Belladonna girl on your team? What's she like?"

Ruby seemed puzzled at the sudden interruption, but smiled shortly after when Blake was mentioned. "You mean Blake? Well...she's a bit mysterious, and she loves to read. Though, to tell you the truth, I don't really know a lot about her." She laughed a sheepish laugh. "We...haven't really talked much."

Kval cocked an eyebrow. "But isn't it the job of a team leader to bond with their teammates?"

Ruby sighed. "I know, but...Blake is a bit hard to approach. And she honestly scares me at times."

"So? As team leader, it's your job to suck it up and get the job done," Kval reminded. "Try, at the very least. If she looks at you with a scary face, then she probably has her reasons. But still, you shouldn't cower away just because of that sole reason. Heck, this is your very own _teammate_ we're talking about! If you don't bond with her, then how do you expect to work well in the field when it's just the two of you together? It _will_ happen eventually, so don't even try to deny it."

"I-I..." Ruby puffed her cheeks out in an adorable manner, and later looked to the side in order to avoid the vessel's gaze. "The fact that you're right annoys me for some reason..." she muttered.

"Is that so?" Kval chuckled at that. "You should be."

He liked being right, especially when it came to arguments and such. He didn't know why, but it just made him feel great and powerful. Who doesn't? Back when he was in the Mage's Guild, Kval would always-

 _You were right all along, Kazuma. A new pair of glasses was just what I needed!_

The smile on Kval's face faltered a bit at the sudden appearance of that certain memory. This did not go unnoticed by Ruby, however.

"You okay?" inquired Ruby, somewhat concerned. "You look a bit...sad, I think? Why the face?"

Kval simply waved the girl's worries away and shook his head. "It's nothing. I was just thinking about how many boiled eggs I can swallow down my throat in one big gulp without ending up choking myself to death. Nothing too serious."

Ruby stared at the vessel through half-lidded eyes. Judging by the look on her face, it was quite clear to Kval that she wasn't convinced with his pathetic excuse of an excuse. "Really?"

Kval shrugged, his mouth forming a thin straight line. "Think what you want."

Ruby continued to stare at him, her eyes squinting, only to sigh moments later. "Fine. Be that way."

Kval shrugged once more. "Thank you?"

Ruby pouted and folded her arms, but then a thought crossed her mind. She turned to Kval, but her gaze wandered elsewhere. "So...Kazuma. You wouldn't mind if I start calling you Kazuma, right?" she asked.

"Well, that _is_ my name. Go ahead." Kval smiled. "So...Ruby, if I may?" The smile on his face widened a bit when the girl nodded. "Great."

"Anyway," Ruby continued, "I just want to ask you something. It's...pretty important."

Kval went wide-eyed and gasped, being overly dramatic. "My word! Ruby, with all due respect, fire away! I am dying to know what has been troubling that little mind of yours!"

"Hey!" Ruby glared at him. "If that last part was supposed to be a joke, then I'm not laughing. It wasn't funny."

"Ah, my bad. Come on now, there is no need for you to give me such a scary face." Kval laughed. "So, what was that question? And I wasn't joking when I said that I was dying to know."

Ruby's eyes softened themselves in an instant. She looked down and pressed her index fingers together, looking all nervous. "Why...did you save me at that time?" she asked.

 _Oh. So that's been bothering her. Figures._ Kval nodded to himself. _For a second there, I thought that it was actually something important. Looks like I was in the wrong entirely._

"Well?" Ruby waited, her head tilting to the left adorably.

"Would you like me to be blunt?" Kval inquired, only to smile slightly when the girl nodded. "Well then, I see a lot of good traits in you. From what I've gathered, you're childish, a bit na茂ve, and pretty reckless in the battlefield. Oh, and-"

"Wait wait wait wait!" Ruby interrupted, flailing her arms about while doing so. "You call _those_ good traits!? Are you being serious!? Y-You're joking...right? Please tell me you're joking!"

"Joking? Why, not at all. In fact, I'm just being blunt." Kval held a hand to his mouth and chuckled softly. "That being said, would you like me to continue?"

Ruby held up a finger to argue, only to slouch in her spot when nothing came to mind. She nodded. "Fine..."

The air grew somewhat silent.

"You're cute."

"Huh?" Ruby stared at the vessel, wide-eyed. Without even realising it, her cheeks began to turn red. "Wha...?"

"You provide good company. You try hard to prove to others that you're capable. You're protective, talkative, and better yet, friendly," Kval listed, smiling as he did. He held up a finger, and frowned, as if trying to recall something. "Hm...let's see..."

Ruby went silent, face all red and speechless. She wanted to say something, truly she did, but was too embarrassed to do so. Heck, other than Yang and her dad, and maybe even Pyrrha, no one had ever pointed out the good traits she had straight to her face before. Until now.

"Ah!" Kval snapped his fingers. He turned to Ruby, cleared his throat, and said, "I look at you, and what I see before me, is a girl who wishes nothing but to protect others, and has the skills to take down an entire army of monsters on her own. However, to do all that, you require a lot of training. Perfect your skills, polish your moves, and most importantly, learn whatever you can whenever you're being sent out in the field. Putting it simply, I see a lot of potential in you, so it would have been a real waste if you were to be killed by that gigantic insect." He folded his arms and nodded a few times. "You've got a long way ahead of you, and honestly, there's no wrong with me helping out a bit, now is there? Sure, you're dangerous, but you just...lack experience is all."

All Ruby could do in return was nod, entirely speechless.

"Well," Kval placed a hand onto Ruby's head, smiling. "there you have it. Were you satisfied?"

Ruby remained silent, unsure of how to respond to that particular question. Though, she knew for a fact that she was _more_ than satisfied deep down inside, but the problem was that she just didn't know how to express it in words. After hearing all that, her mind was in the state of utter shambles, so nobody could blame her.

Kval continued to smile, but was actually laughing nervously on the inside. _Crap. I went a bit too far there. Looks like I'm still soft when it comes to helping others...but, I never did like his way of doing things, so there's that I guess._

"T-Thank you..." Ruby moved her gaze down onto the grass, blushing heavily as she fidgeted in her spot. "I-I'll...be sure to train myself starting from today. A-And...it's honestly good to know that there are some people out there who believes in my capabilities."

"E-Eh?" Kval pulled his hand away, confused, only to start sweating a bit upon realising what she meant. "A-Ah, of course. Good luck with that, Ruby."

"Thanks." Ruby couldn't resist giggling when a thought occurred to her. "Y'know, you're actually pretty nice...despite having that kind of attitude," she commented with a soft smile.

Kval shrugged at that. "I am a lot of things, Ruby. You'd be surprised."

Just then, a portal opened up a few feet away from where the two were located, gaining their undivided attention.

"That's...your portal," Ruby muttered, sounding a bit disappointed for some odd reason.

"Indeed it is." Kval sighed. He went up to his feet and dusted off his clothes. "Well, I should leave. I enjoyed our talk, by the way." He walked over to the bright portal, and later waved at Ruby. "Let's talk more the next time we meet in the future."

"Hey Kazuma?" Ruby called out, catching the vessel's attention. "You never did tell me the reason why you kept appearing around me, along with my teammates. Why?"

Kval remained silent, with his back turned to her. He took the time to process his answer, and muttered, "I'm just...stuck in a troublesome situation is all. Just think of me as your guardian or something. Yeah, that could work."

Ruby cocked an eyebrow. "Guardian?"

Kval shrugged. "Seeing that you're going to run into me a whole lot in the future, why not, right?"

"Oh..." Ruby nodded, before a wide smile took over her face. "Then I'll be sure to carry those boiled eggs with me the next time we meet! Count on it!"

Kval turned to Ruby at the mention of his favorite meal with a grin plastered across his face. "I'll be looking forward to it, so you better not disappoint," he said.

 **-IIXII-**

The air was colder than usual, but Blake didn't seem to be bothered by it. She continued to stare at the statue, ignoring the fact that tears were welling up in the corner of her eyes, and slowly undid her bow, revealing her extra set of ears. Silently, she gazed down at the black ribbon in her hand, but no matter how hard she tried, the argument from before just kept popping up inside her mind.

 _No one understands,_ she thought. _No one. Not Ruby, not Yang, and especially that...that Schnee! They're all the same._

Just when she was about to start getting comfortable in Beacon, this happened.

All because of that heiress.

Weiss Schnee.

Her name alone was enough to make her feel sick to the stomach, and it was _sickening_. All she ever did was yell at others as if her life depended on it. It's as if she was expecting others to be perfect and on the same level as herself, or at least higher, but they weren't.

 _As expected from a Schnee._ Blake hesitantly wiped her tears away with her sleeve. _That's what happens when you get too comfortable in a rich family..._

There was no going back now. Weiss knew. They all knew. Heck, how would Team JNPR react if they were informed of Blake's secret?

 _Should I even stay here anymore? Do I even deserve to be a Huntress?_

Blake clenched her teeth as countless of thoughts ran through her mind, only for her to jump a few inches off the ground when a certain someone tapped her on the shoulder. In instinct, she whirled around and slashed at the person with Gambol Shroud, but was surprised to find her very own weapon flying out of her grasp by a tremendous force.

"You're the same as Ruby..." Kval commented, rubbing at his sore hand as he eyed the faunus. "Is that how you greet people nowadays? If so, then I must've been living under a rock all this time."

"You!" Blake exclaimed. Tears began to stream down her cheeks, but she paid it no mind. "W-What are you doing here? What do you want?"

"Eh?" Kval cocked an eyebrow at the sight of Blake's face. "You're...crying? Now that's new." His gaze wandered over to the top of her head, and his eyes widened a bit when her extra pair of ears entered his line of sight. "Okay, now _that's_ new. But seeing that you're the silent type, it's quite fitting for some reason. Where's your tail?"

Unfortunately for Kval, however, Blake took those words as an insult. Adding in the emotional pain which she was currently going through, it was near impossible for her to _not_ lash out at him right then and there. So in the end she charged at him in blind rage, as it was an attempt to kick out all of her anger and frustrations from her system.

"My word..." Kval swiftly moved out of harm's way and, despite not liking the idea of harming her, outstretched his leg, successfully tripping the faunus girl. The sight of her slamming her face down onto the concrete ground made him wince.

The vessel was actually expecting her to get back up and claw at him or something, but was ultimately caught off-guard when she literally broke down in tears.

Kval liked to think that he was a professional when it came to facing all sorts of situations, and that wasn't actually far from the truth, to be exact. Hell, he managed to survive on his own against three assailants. He battled against the Black Beast alongside the other members of the Six Heroes. He was the founder of Sector Seven _and_ the NOL. He gave Jubei and Hakumen a hard time in battle despite being outnumbered. The fact that he was still breathing right now after being thrown into a different world was proof that he could handle a lot of things.

But this...

He had little to no experience when it came to dealing with something like this. Despite that, however, Kval knew that leaving the girl in such a state would ultimately leave a bad taste in his mouth, so he decided to step out of his comfort zone and, hoping that his decision wouldn't bite him in the ass later on, help her out with whatever she's dealing with.

Besides, it's not like he had anything better to do anyway.

"Hey uh..." Kval examined Blake's head from multiple angles with a clueless expression, and later asked, "Are you feeling well? Got a stomachache? I don't have pills with me but-"

Blake immediately pushed herself up and practically screamed into his face, "W-What does it look like to you!?"

Kval yelped and fell on his butt, eyeing the crying girl up and down. "D-Don't scream in my face! I'm right here!"

Blake glared at him. "I've dealt with enough jerks for today..."

"A jerk? Me?" Kval pointed at himself, and couldn't resist laughing nervously at the ridiculous thought. "Surely you jest. What did I do?"

Blake's glare hardened.

 _Well Ruby was right about her face being scary,_ Kval thought, chuckling nervously at that. _For now, I better not piss her off more than she already is. Yeah. I'm doing one hell of a great job at it too._

"Just leave me alone..." Blake muttered, sounding bitter. "I'm not in the mood to talk to others..."

Kval narrowed his eyes. A risky plan of sorts began to form itself inside his head, and all he could do was hope that his arm won't fly off in the process of said plan. _Well, better hope this works..._

Blake began to grow a tad bit suspicious when she saw the look on Kval's face. Her eyes turned to menacing slits, and instincts told her to back away, and so she did, if only for a bit. "W-Why are you looking at me like that?" The pair of ears on her head flattened themselves when Kval reached out towards them, and she gave a low growl as a warning. But to her shock, the vessel simply ignored it and pushed forward. "H-Hey! What are you-"

And just like that, Blake went silent.

Kval blinked a couple of times. _I...can't believe that actually worked._ Slowly, he began to brush his fingers against the girl's delicate cat ears, being as gentle as he could be. He tilted his head to one side, and thought, _As expected, they're soft._

Blake, who had went silent due to pure shock, couldn't resist the urge to blush at what the vessel was currently doing with her ears. Heck, it felt _good_ , and she wasn't afraid to admit it.

But then, she was mortified when a small noise managed to escape her lips.

"Mew..."

Kval went wide-eyed.

Blake's face went redder.

And then a loud slap was heard.

Somewhere far in the distance, a certain blond monkey faunus winced at the sight. "That's gotta leave a mark," he commented.

 **-IIXII-**

 **Well that went south** **quicker than expected** **. And what's this? No portals? It seems to me** **Kval won't be going anywhere for a while...**

 **Anyway, thanks for reading, and be sure to leave a review!**


End file.
